Chuck Versus the Nacho Sampler
|next= }} Chuck Versus the Nacho Sampler is the sixth episode of season three, which aired on February 1, 2010. It is the forty-first episode overall. Synopsis Chuck trains a new Nerd Herd employee named Hannah, and on his spy assignment, he needs to handle an asset who works for the Ring, without arousing suspicion. Full Plot Main Story While training Hannah on Nerd Herd procedures, Chuck is called away by Casey to attend a briefing in Castle, under the cover of "yogurt time". When they enter, Chuck notices the absence of Shaw, which Sarah answers that he's off grid on a covert missing. General Beckman, appearing on the debriefing room screen, reminds Chuck that it's not his place to ask where Shaw is. When she calls him "Mr. Bartowski", Chuck inserts that it's "Agent Bartowski", due to the completion of his first solo mission last week. However, her expression tells him that she was already briefed. Cutting to the chase, Beckman announces to the team that The Ring has transferred a sizeable amount of money to a computer engineer named Manoosh Depark (Fahim Anwar) and orders Chuck to gain his confidence to determine the nature of his work with The Ring; in short, develop him as an asset. She has made arrangements that will force Manoosh to come to the Burbank Buy More, where Chuck is to make contact. Sarah has misgivings over whether Chuck is ready, but Casey is confident. However, Chuck overplays his effort when Manoosh attempts to leave the store, and botches the contact. The team makes a second attempt later that night at a local Mexican restaurant, where Chuck arranges an "accidental" meeting at the bar, passing the earlier incident off as a bet to see who could get a customer to steal from the store. After being coached through how to ingratiate himself with the asset by Sarah and Casey, Chuck manages to get Manoosh to divulge that he is working on a weapon. During the conversation Manoosh is contacted on a Ring Communicator by his Ring handlers, who are closing in. Realizing Chuck is working too slowly, Sarah enters with a leather jacket and removes it only to take over to accelerate things and begins to seduce Manoosh, before tranquilizing him and allowing Chuck to remove him from the restaurant just as the Ring agents enter. As they speed away, Casey congratulates Sarah; "Another geek bites the dust." Manoosh wakes up in what is supposedly Sarah's room (in reality is a section of Castle). Sarah continues to seduce him, attempting to charm him into revealing secrets about his work. Casey and Chuck observe through a two-way mirror, and Casey tranquilizes Manoosh through a hole in the wall when he asks Sarah for another go at intercourse. Sarah heads round to the other side of the one way wall, and Chuck, Sarah and Casey examine Manoosh's briefcase, and find a suspicious object within. While Casey examines it, Chuck returns the briefcase to Manoosh--who was earlier carefully released by the team to hide his actual whereabouts and is now waiting at the Buy More--so he can be on his way. Manoosh says that he is going on a business trip and when he gets back, he'll start a company and include Chuck in its development. He then gets a call on his Ring phone, with his Ring handler yelling at him. Fearing that the Ring will track down and kill Manoosh, Chuck runs back into Castle to plead his partners for help. Casey reminds him that Manoosh is working for the Ring and as an asset, is only fit for information only. When he successfully break into the device, it sprays out a white substance. Touching it determines that it is a decoy, filled with shaving cream. Meanwhile, several Ring agents corner Manoosh near the Buy More's loading dock. Chuck and the team watch the CCTV footage in surprise as Manoosh takes out a pair of sunglasses and flashes on advanced kung-fu. He quickly defeats his assailants and flees. The team realizes the Ring is attempting to rebuild the Intersect. Chuck is more perplexed that Manoosh could reverse engineer the Intersect, as his father was suppose to be the only one who could. Casey answers that the Ring hauled the remains of the Intersect 2.0 from a CIA warehouse. Manoosh is tracked to Weap-Con (a weapons show that Casey enjoys) in Dubai and the team follows him. They watch from the audience as Manoosh demonstrates his Intersect device for several dignitaries and high-ranking military officers, then observe him backstage. Casey moves to take Manoosh out, but Chuck prevents him from doing so, claiming that Manoosh is his asset and that he will deal with him. Chuck leaves the cover and warns Manoosh not to proceed, revealing his identity. Manoosh is horrified to learn of Chuck's real intentions, and is hurt even more when Sarah shows up, as he realizes that she was only with him to get information. However, before Manoosh can flee or the team can take action, several Ring agents intervene and capture the four. Chuck, Sarah and Casey are imprisoned, and Manoosh is threatened to turn over the device, who destroys his prototype thinking they will have to keep him alive. Chuck uses his teeth to pull Casey's Japanese laser pen from his pocket and burns through the lock on Casey's handcuffs, and the team free themselves before Manoosh can be killed, and a fight begins. The Ring agents are defeated and Manoosh is secured by Chuck. Chuck initially allows him to leave, but as his asset is walking out, tranquilizes him instead when he sees Casey about to do so for him. To protect him, Chuck remands Manoosh over to the custody of the government once back at Burbank. Manoosh tries defending that his attempt to make money is not illegal and pleads to Chuck as his friend. Chuck corrects, he's not his friend, but a spy, and can only watch as Manoosh is hauled out by government agents. Casey acknowledges Chuck is becoming a spy but Sarah wonders aloud whether it's truly a good thing, thinking back to the day she was tasked with developing Chuck as an asset, while back at home Chuck begins to drink. Buy More and Family Chuck is attempting to train Hannah for her new job with the Nerd Herd, but finds it difficult as Casey keeps calling him away for "yoghurt time" (briefings on new intel). Jeff and Lester immediately take a liking to her and begin making advances, until first Chuck and later Morgan, who has his own interest in Hannah, warn them off. Morgan later bribes Jeff and Lester into stalking her to learn as much about her as they can so he can make himself look better to her. He learns that she is into foreign films and classical music, and as such outfits his "office" (a converted storage room) to suit Hannah's tastes in an effort to win her over. Hannah is initially impressed, but Morgan is crushed when Hannah mentions Chuck's trip to Paris, which she believes was an install and is unaware that no one else knows about it, including Morgan who did not think Chuck would keep such a secret from him. Meanwhile, Devon is still recovering from his experience as a prisoner of the Ring. He is jumpy and has lost interest in exercise, and his own relationship with Ellie is suffering due to his difficulties lying to her, especially when Ellie finds a luggage claim ticket from Chuck's mission in Paris. Devon confronts Chuck about the situation, but hides when Ellie arrives as well to complain that Chuck didn't tell her about his trip. Devon is shocked and outraged at the ease with which Chuck lies to her (Chuck claims the trip was a surprise because he "secured" the apartment in Paris for Devon and Ellie's use for a week as a proper honeymoon) and doesn't accept Chuck's explanation that he has to lie to keep them from going into witness protection. Casey, watching with Sarah from Castle, is impressed with Chuck's new found adeptness at lying, remarking that Chuck is becoming a real spy. Sarah questions how good that really is to herself. When Chuck later has tickets to Paris delivered to Ellie as if to confirm the story, Devon gets angry and demands Ellie refuse them before storming out again, as he can't stand lying to her. Ellie runs into Morgan on the way out, and both lament about the strange behavior of Chuck and Devon. Morgan promises to find out what's going on, and taps Jeff and Lester to spy on Chuck. Guest Stars * Fahim Anwar as Manoosh Depak * Bonita Friedericy as General Diane Beckman * Kristin Kreuk as Hannah * Bob McCracken as an unnamed Ring agent Trivia * When the team visits the "Weap-Con" arms show, there are bikini-clad girls posing with guns and an announcer says "The Peacemaker demonstration has been postponed". These are references to the 1983 cold-war movie "Deal of the Century". * The "EM-50" is a reference to the Urban Assault vehicle in the movie "Stripes". It is also the name of the bugs Casey installed in the Buy More, as Sarah says in "Chuck Versus the Marlin". * The 'Frak Off' T-shirt worn by Sarah while seducing Manoosh is a reference to Battlestar Galactica (The word frack is "the f word" there), a show earlier on in the episode said to be a favorite of both Chuck and Manoosh. * The flash sequence for Manoosh's Intersect is the same one originally used for the Intersect 2.0 in "Chuck Versus the Ring". * goof : when sarah removes his leather jacket he moves his ribs but when she finaly removes his leather jacket his ribs moves again meaning a mistake in that shot Quotes Morgan: Are you suggesting that Chuck is caught in a big, giant web of conspiracy and - and deception? Ellie: I know. I know when you put it like that, it sounds ridiculous. Morgan: Because I couldn't agree more! All right, I've been thinking about this for *months*. Finally, someone with some common sense. Ellie: Morgan, we have to figure out what's going on. Morgan: Don't worry about it. I've got my *best* men on it. Music * Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros – “40 Day Dream” * The Clash – “Rock The Casbah” * Tchaikovsky – “Swan Lake” * Calvin Harris – “Merrymaking At My Place” * Datarock – “Amarillion” * La Tropicana Orchestra – “Tropicana” Category:Season 3 Television Series Episodes